Tigers fall to A's at Comerica, 8-3

Detroit Tigers center fielder JaCoby Jones (40) has his hand looked at, after sliding head first into third base, at by trainer Kevin Rand while manager Brad Ausmus looks on in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Detroit, Monday, Sept. 18, 2017. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Olson became the first A’s player to homer in four straight games since Coco Crisp in 2013, and now has 14 home runs in his last 20 games.

Tigers reliever Jeff Ferrell left the game in the eighth inning after getting hit in the head with a line drive off the bat off Ryon Healy. The hit was measured at 102.6 mph by StatCast and hit Ferrell in the right side of the head.

He never went down, but jogged immediately toward the Detroit dugout and was escorted to the clubhouse.

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Nicholas Castellanos had three hits for the Tigers, extending his career-best hitting streak to 15 games.

Raul Alcantara, who started when Jharel Cotton strained his groin during pre-game warmups, pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two hits. Liam Hendriks (4-2), the third of six Oakland pitchers, got the win with 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Buck Farmer (4-4) allowed five runs, four earned, on six hits in 2 2/3 innings.

The Athletics took a 1-0 lead in the first on Lowrie’s career-best 46th double of the season, scoring Marcus Semien. Lowrie is now one double short of matching Jason Giambi’s 2001 record for an Oakland player. Al Simmons holds the overall franchise record with 53 in 1926, when the franchise was still in Philadelphia.

Lowrie’s sacrifice fly made it 2-0 in the third. Olson added a two-run homer later in the inning.

An error by third baseman Jeimer Candelario kept the inning alive, and Chad Pinder’s RBI double ended Farmer’s day. JaCoby Jones ended the inning with a running catch of Matt Champan’s line drive into the right-center field gap.

Lowrie got his third RBI when Artie Lewicki walked him with the bases loaded in the fourth.

Jones and Ian Kinsler hit RBI doubles in the fifth, and Kinsler homered in the seventh.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Athletics: Cotton’s status going forward wasn’t immediately announced. He missed most of July with a blister on his pitching thumb.

Tigers: 1B Miguel Cabrera returned to the lineup after leaving Saturday’s game with chronic lower-back tightness and taking Sunday off. ... RHP Jordan Zimmermann (neck strain) threw a bullpen session on Monday and could start Thursday against the Kansas City Royals.

TRIPLE-A MANAGER FIRED

The Tigers announced Monday that Mike Rojas, manager of their Triple-A affiliate in Toledo, will not return for the 2018 season. They did not announce a replacement.

UP NEXT

The teams play the second of a three-game series Tuesday night with Oakland’s Daniel Gossett (4-9, 5.02) facing Detroit’s Chad Bell (0-3, 6.42). Both pitchers will be facing their opponents for the first time.